HEAVY FIRE LOSS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20077, 25 October 1939, Page 6

HEAVY FIRE LOSS

NAPIER HIGH SCHOOL manual"facilities OVERNIGHT OUTBREAK (Special to the Herald.) NAPIER, this day. An outbreak of fire last night almost completely destroyed the manual training department of the Napier Boys’ High School, causing loss estimated at not less than £4OOO. The building was seven years old, and was erected at a cost of £3OOO. while the manual training equipment included a forge, lathes, drilling and milling machines, and electrical and mechanical instruments of a total value of £IOOO.

The fire was discovered at 11.15 p.m. and though the Napier Fire Brigade made a smart turn-out, it was too late to stop the fire spreading over the whole'of the manual training department. Only two leads of hose were ’ available, and once the hopelessness of saving the manual department was realised, efforts were directed to preventing the further spread of the outbreak. At one time it seemed possible that the assembly hall of the school also might catch fire.

Public interest in the fire was reflected by a large attendance of sightseers, some of whom were with difficulty dissuaded from driving cars across the hoses. One brigadesman suffered a burned hand.